Torn
by iloveromance
Summary: Sally, who only has eyes for Jack Skellington, is perused by a handsome stranger who finds his way to the town called Halloween
1. Chapter 1

The moon was full and bright, as it always was in the town of Halloween.

And around the cloudy sky, the bats, witches and goblins flew, demonstrating their most terrifying screams.

But Jack Skellington and Sally hardly noticed.

They stood beneath an old oak tree-one that had died many moons ago; it's bare branches spread out like thin, bony arms-lost in each other's eyes.

When the bats, witches and goblins flew away (giving Jack and Sally a moment of privacy), Jack slid his long, thin arm around the beautiful rag doll he loved so much and kissed her.

"I-I can't believe this is happening. I-I mean... I never realized-."

Sally smiled. "I can't believe it either. I tried to tell you how I felt before... so many times. I just-."

"I love you, Sally."

His sweetheart gasped at words he'd spoken for the first time, and he smiled as her white cotton cheeks turned a bright shade of pink.

"I love you too, Jack."

They kissed again and then held each other close beneath the huge glowing moon.

Sally rested her head on Jack's chest, sighing contentedly.

"This is way the afterlife should be."

"It's getting late." Jack said. "Shall I walk you home?"

Sally smiled, feeling suddenly shy. "All right... Jack."

Hand in hand they walked down the eerily dark path, lit only from the moonlight.

The walk seemed to take forever; as Sally's castle was quite a ways away.

But that didn't matter to Jack and Sally. They had finally found each other and wanted to spend as much time as possible together.

Unfortunately, they were often kept apart by the evil scientist Dr. Finklestein; a rather strange man from whom Sally regularly managed to escape.

All too soon they reached Finklestein's castle.

"Well... I guess this is goodnight." Jack said.

Sally sighed. "I guess it is. Goodnight Jack. Will I see you tomorrow?"

"Absolutely! There's a town meeting called by the Mayor at 9:30 in the morning, so-."

The seriousness in his voice made Sally laugh. "I don't mean that, Silly! I meant... Just the two of us?"

This time it was Jack's turn to blush; a rather unusual thing for a pumpkin king to do. It was a new emotion for him; this falling in love. But he wouldn't have it any other way.

"Oh..." He said. "I think that can be arranged. I'll see you in the morning."

Slowly he leaned over and kissed the beautiful rag doll once more.

"Goodnight."

"Goodnight, Jack! I love you!" Sally called to him as he and his faithful ghost dog Zero disappeared into the night sky.

And then without anther word, she climbed up the rope that led to her room at the top of the castle where she could fall asleep in her bed...

And dream about the Pumpkin King whom she loved so much.


	2. Chapter 2

"Town meeting! Town meeting! Calling all citizens! Town meeting!"

The mayor's voice boomed through the bullhorn as his tiny car wound its' way through the streets of Halloween.

Jack ran as fast as his long, thin legs would carry him; anxious to see the rag doll that he loved so much.

"I'm here, Mayor!" he shouted as he made his way through the crowd that had gathered in front of Halloween City Hall.

"Attention! Attention!" The mayor shouted, rapping his cane on the podium.

When the jumbled voices of the citizens continued, Jack stepped up to the podium, which only resulted in cheers and applause.

"Thank you! Thank you, everyone! Now if you would please direct your attention to our honorable mayor who has an important issue to discuss with us."

Immediately a hush went over the crowd as the mayor resumed his position at the podium.

"Thank you, Jack Skellington! Now, as you know today is May 7th and spring is in the air. The flowers are blooming, the birds are singing and love is abundant.

At the confused glances and murmurs, he smiled.

"But not here of course! That would be wrong! Why, we rather enjoy our dreary days and nights. It's the perfect weather for terrifying others, and isn't that what our community is all about?"

A collective sigh could be heard among the citizens.

"Yes, spring is here whether we like it or not. But what's more important here is that there are only 177 days left until next Halloween!"

This news brought another gasp.

"Yes, it's hard to believe, but it's true. So we must act fast in order to make this the best Halloween ever!"

Then, an eruption of cheers and applause.

"All right, so let's get to work, shall we?"

The crowd disbursed, leaving only a few souls who were gathered in groups, eager to share ideas about Halloween.

And there, in the shadows, stood Sally.

Jack's heart warmed at the sight of her; a feeling he still hadn't quite gotten used to. He hurried over to her and shyly took her hand in his.

"Hello."

"Hi." She said, just as shyly.

"I... wasn't sure if you'd be here. B-but I'm glad you are."

"Of course I came." Sally said. "Halloween means a lot to you, just like Christmas... did."

"I'm so ashamed of myself. I just don't know what came over me." Jack said, remembering how he'd tried to take over the wonderful holiday known as Christmas and put his own Halloween spin on it.

"You wanted to help people and I think that's nice." Sally said.

"But it's not who I am!" Jack said. "The people of Halloween town expect me to be a leader; a role model. What kind of role model would I be if I go around _caring_ about people?"

She smiled and batted her eyelashes at him. "You care about me, don't you?"

Again his heart warmed and he bent to kiss her. "Well of course, but you're... different."

Sally sighed and hugged him tightly. "Oh Jack, I do love you so. And I promise that nothing and no one will ever come between us."


	3. Chapter 3

"Stay right here, okay?"

Sally looked at Jack in confusion. "Of course, but what-."  
>"I just need to talk to the mayor about one thing. I can't believe I forgot to ask him how many bats and snakes we need for next Halloween."<p>

"Oh... All right. I'll wait here and stare up at the sky. It's such a beautiful day, don't you think?" Sally asked.

"It certainly is..." Jack said, looking up at the dreary, gray sky. "It's the most perfect day I could ever imagine. And I can't wait to share it with you."  
>"Oh Jack..." She sighed, taking his hand in hers.<p>

He kissed her cotton cheek and reluctantly let go of her hand. "I'll be right back." He said with a smile.

When he was engrossed in conversation with the mayor, she slumped to the ground against a rotted oak tree. Thoughts of Jack filled her mind making her smile and she closed her eyes.

A happy memory began to take shape inside of her head.

He arrived at the castle carrying a bouquet of dried weeds; interspersed with bugs of all sorts.

"Oh Jack, they're beautiful!" She gasped.

"I picked them just for you, Sally." Jack replied, his stark white cheeks turning an unusual shade of pink.  
>She eyed him awkwardly, wondering what could possibly trigger such a strange reaction. Perhaps he was coming down with something.<p>

But, as they said in the town called Halloween... the sicker the better. After all, death was something to be celebrated. But since most of the citizens were already dead, it was only natural to embrace it.

After a wonderful night of scaring as many people as possible, Jack took Sally home. And just as he was about to say goodnight, she kissed him.

"Wh-what was that for?" the Pumpkin King asked nervously.

The question made Sally smile.

"Because I love you, Jack."  
>"Oh-Oh well... I love you too, Sally."<br>They kissed again and stared into each other's eyes; their foreheads touching, not caring how many ghosts or goblins were watching them.

Gently, he reached out and touched her cotton cheek, causing it to fill with color once more.

When he turned to leave, she climbed up the rope and returned to the castle; watching Jack as he headed down the long yellow path.

She was definitely the luckiest rag doll who ever lived... Or died...

Sally was so engrossed in thought that she barely noticed the shadow that loomed before her.

Feeling strangely nervous, she looked up and found herself staring at an extremely handsome fellow, causing her to gasp in surprise.

"Oh!"

She pulled herself to her feet and absently brushed the dirt from her hands on to her tattered patchwork dress.

"Hello. I hope I didn't frighten you." He said, in the most interesting voice she'd ever heard. It was calm and cool... Not at all like the harsh, raspy voices of her friends in the town called Halloween.

"Um... No..."  
>"My name is Decatur, but you can call me Deco."<br>She stared into his shiny black eyes. His face was a pale yellow, triangular in shape. He wore a blue shirt and black pants and his wavy hair seemed to stick out in every direction but it was his smile that caught her attention.


	4. Chapter 4

"What's your name?" He was asking.

"Um... M-My name is...um..."  
>He scrunched his eyebrows together, clearly confused by her answer.<p>

"You can't remember your name? This is a most unusual occurrence. Where I come from, no one ever forgets their name. Perhaps I could help you to remember?"

"Oh... Well... Okay." She said, feeling incredibly dumb, even with the brain Dr. Finklestein had given her.

"Is it... _Cindy_?"  
>She shook her head and giggled. What kind of name is <em>Cindy<em> for a _rag doll_?  
>"No? How about <em>Margaret<em>?"  
>Again she shook her head.<p>

"Hmm... This is proving to be more difficult than I anticipated." Deco said.  
>A familiar warmth filled her rag doll heart as she looked into his eyes; his smile threatening to send her tumbling to the ground.<p>

And then it happened...

"Whoa!" she said, starting to sway back and forth. The next thing she knew, she landed hard on the ground; her limbs breaking away from her body.

Deco gasped in horror. "Oh my! What's happened? What have I done?"  
>"SALLY!"<p>

She looked up, noticing the long legs that ran toward her.

"Jack!"  
>He rushed to her side and began picking up the cotton limbs that were scattered around the ground.<p>

"Are you okay?"

She sat up, desperately looking for her hand to put on her aching head. "I-I think so."  
>"What happened?"<br>"I-I fell."  
>He looked at her with such concern that she smiled.<br>"Oh Sally, I'm so sorry! Let me help you."  
>He eased her to a sitting position and gathered her limbs, putting them into a neat pile next to her.<p>

"Needle and thread?"  
>"In my pocket." She said, guiding him to the items with a nod of her head.<p>

He reached into her pocket and pulled out the needle, holding it against the dreary sky.  
>"Ah! Here we are!"<p>

"Thank you, Jack." She said, taking the needle and thread from him. Within seconds she had stitched herself back together and stood on her feet.

Suddenly she looked around, almost frantic. "Where is he?"

"Who?"  
>"Deco. He was right here and now..."<br>Jack's eyes narrowed. "Who's Deco?"  
>"Oh... just someone I met."<br>"Ah... well as long as he's good at scaring people. We could use a fresh batch of screams on Halloween. Why I was just telling the mayor-."  
>But Sally wasn't listening. Her eyes were transfixed on the handsome yellow fellow with the shiny black eyes.<p> 


	5. Chapter 5

"Sally... Is that your name?" Deco asked.

She nodded, aware of Jack, who had moved into the shadows, watching them.

"It's lovely." he said; Deco's face brightening at her smile.

"I'm so sorry this happened, Sally. Are you all right?"

"I am now." She said, returning the needle and thread to her pocket.

"Good, because I was worried. I didn't mean to cause you any harm."

"You didn't. I'm used to stitching myself back up. It happens all the time."

"Well, if you don't mind, I'd like to make it up to you." Deco said.

"But you didn't do anything wrong!" Sally replied.

"Nonsense. I insist and I won't take no for an answer."  
>When he handed her a bouquet of wildflowers that seemingly came out of nowhere, she gasped in surprise.<p>

"Something wrong?"

"Um... no. I've never seen anything so beautiful before. The colors... they're... bright and cheerful."

"Exactly! Not at all like these."

Before she could protest, he picked up a handful of weeds-the kind Jack always gave her-and tossed them aside.

"B-but-."

She turned, dismayed to find that Jack was no longer in his hiding place.

"There, now isn't that better?" Deco asked with a smile.

Hesitantly, she nodded.

He held out his hand. "Shall we go?"

She looked at him in confusion. "Go?"

"Well yes. I can't very well make it up to you from here." Deco said.

"But where..."

"To my world."

Reluctantly she took his hand (which felt strangely different from Jack's) and followed him out of the town called Halloween, where together they set off for a new world.

Jack emerged from his hiding place-a place where Sally would never suspect him to be-and sighed.

Sally was gone.

He bowed his head and sadly made his way back home, having lost his beautiful rag doll forever.


	6. Chapter 6

"Now close your eyes." Deco said.

"Where are we?" Sally asked as Deco guided her slowly into the unknown world.

"All right, you can open your eyes now."

Sally's eyes opened and she gasped in delight. "What is this place?"

"This is the place where all of your drams come true." Deco said.

Sally took in her surroundings, unable to believe that this place was real.

Everywhere she looked were things that gave her a strange feeling. Warmth and bright colors... colors that would never be allowed in the town called Halloween.

"What's happening?"

"Ah... I knew you'd like it, Sally. This feeling... it's new to you, isn't it?" Deco asked.

Her eyes met his in surprise. "This... feeling?"

"Yes. You're smiling. It seems that it's been a while since you've felt this way."

Sally felt the warmth from the huge orange sun in the sky, and inhaled the sweet scent of the flowers.

Overcome with emotion, she spread her arms wide and twirled around and around.

"Deco, I think I know what this feeling is."

Deco smiled. "That's wonderful, Sally. I was hoping you would."

"This feeling... I'm happy. I think I could stay here forever."

"So what's stopping you?"

She stopped twirling and stared at him in surprise. "What do you mean?"

"Stay with me, Sally."

"Oh Deco... I don't know what to say!"

He took her hand and brought it to his lips for a kiss.

"Why must you hesitate so?"

"Well..."

"Oh Sally, forget about Halloween! It's a dismal, dreary place that doesn't suit you at all."

"It doesn't?"

"Of course not! You're much too beautiful to live in such misery."

"B-but I'm not miserable! I'm... did you just say that I'm beautiful?"

Deco moved closer and took her chin in his hand. "Yes... you're the most beautiful rag doll I've ever seen."

"Oh Deco..."

But before she could say anything more, Deco leaned toward her for a kiss.


	7. Chapter 7

She stepped back, amazed at what had just happened.

She'd kissed Jack before; many, many times in fact. But it had never felt like this.

Deco's kiss was new to her. It felt warm and the feeling spread throughout her cloth body.

Tears came to her eyes and she wondered why.

"Sally! You're crying!" Deco said. "What's wrong?"

"I don't know. I thought tears were for sadness. But I'm not sad. I'm-."

"Happy?" He finished.

"Why would I cry if I'm happy?"

"Well, those are the only kind of tears allowed in my world." Deco said. "Stay with me, Sally and I'll make you happier than you ever dreamed."

"Really?"

"Just trust me."

Sally stared at him for a moment and smiled. Overcome with happiness once more, she ran to Deco and put her arms around him.

"I love you, Deco."


	8. Chapter 8

Sally gasped at the sound of her own words.

"Oh..."

"Oh Sally, I was hoping you'd say that! Now we can be together forever!" Deco said.

Sally looked around at her new beautiful world and suddenly she was afraid.

She didn't belong here. It wasn't familiar and it was so bright here. She was much more used to the dismal grey skies and cold nights.

The air here was so fresh and clean with no hint whatsoever of decay or staleness. It was almost disturbing in a way.

"Sally we can be happy here." Deco was saying. "I'll take care of you and I'll never leave you."

His words seemed so sincere that new tears came to her eyes.

"I can make all of your dreams come true. Just tell me what you want. Anything at all and it's yours."

"Anything?" She asked with hope in her voice.

"Yes, my sweet rag doll. Anything at all."

Sally thought for several minutes before answering. In this beautiful warm world, things were perfect. She had everything she could ever want.

She closed her eyes, aware of Deco kissing her cotton cheeks, making them turn even pinker than they already were.

But something was missing. Something that could make her even happier than anything that Deco could promise her.

Actually it wasn't a _something_ at all. It was a _someone..._


	9. Chapter 9

"You're thinking of Jack aren't you?" Deco asked.

"How did you know about him?"

Ignoring the question, Deco crossed his arms. "So who is this Jack exactly?"

"Jack Skellington, the Pumpkin King. He's my..."

She stopped suddenly not knowing what to say.

What was Jack exactly?

She sighed, thinking about him. On the outside he was tall, thin and had perfect bone structure; something she found incredibly appealing.

But on the inside he was so much more; sweet, kind, considerate, caring... a wonderful leader to the creatures and inhabitants of the town called Halloween.

But most of all, he was her friend... and he loved her... and she loved him... very much.

"I-I need to leave." She said suddenly.

"Leave?"

"Yes. I sincerely appreciate your taking me to visit your world but I must get back to the town of Halloween. Jack needs me!"

"Are you sure about that? Because I certainly don't see him anywhere."

"Well, he's looking for me. I'm sure of it, and I miss him terribly."

"But what about me? You said you loved me!"

She sighed, realizing what a dilemma she'd gotten herself into.

"I do love you, Deco. But I love Jack more, so if you don't mind, I'll just be on my way and-."

His strong hand clamped down on her fragile arm.

"Not so fast!"


	10. Chapter 10

Sally's eyes widened with fright.

This was certainly an unusual emotion to be having in such a beautiful and happy place.

"W-what are you doing?"

"Oh Sally, you don't want to go back to the town of Halloween! There's nothing left for you there! You belong here with me! I love you."

"But what about-."

"Jack? Forget about him! He's nobody compared to Me."

"But I love him!" Sally cried.

"Jack is in your past. But I promise that I'll make your future bright and happy."

"I really must go."

Sally pulled away from Deco as the stitches on her fabric arm began to rip and she stumbled; her limp ragged body falling onto the ground.

_Oh Jack... Where are you? I need you!_


	11. Chapter 11

Jack walked through the cemetery, saying polite hellos to his friends who hovered over their grave sites, moaning in greeting.

"Why so glum, Jack?"

Jack turned around in surprise.

"Oh... Hello Mayor."

"Your ideas for next Halloween are very insightful! It's sure to be the worst we've ever had!"

"That's nice." Jack said. "Although it can't possibly be a success without Sally."

"You miss her, don't you Bone Daddy?" Jack smiled sadly at the thin scrawny zombie who was playing a dismal tune on his saxophone accompanied by his band members on the accordion and the bass.

"More than I thought possible, James. But where could she be?"

"We'll help you find her, won't we?" The mayor said enthusiastically.

The citizens of the town of Halloween cheered. "Of course we will, Jack!"

They searched high and low and everywhere between in their town called Halloween.

Jack scoured the streets in search of his beautiful rag doll, but after several hours with no sign of her, his broken heart began to beat faster with anxiety.

A strange feeling came over him then.

For the first time in his afterlife he was afraid.

Sadly, he walked out of the cemetery and headed home feeling gloomier than he ever thought possible.


	12. Chapter 12

Jack was awakened hours later by excited voices outside his broken window.

He bolted out of bed and peered through the pieces of glass to find three figures on the ground below.

"Jack! Jack! Jack!" They called to him.

He smiled at the sight of his three friends.

"Well! This is a surprise!"

"Come down here! Quickly! Come down here!" They cried.

Jack bounded down the large spiral staircase and pushed his front door open, smiling when he saw his friends Lock, Shock and Barrel.

"What are you doing here? It's a little early to be scaring people, you know!"

"Oh, we're not here to scare anyone, Jack!" Shock said, taking off her witch's hat.

"No! We're here to see you!" Lock said. "We have good news!"

Jack sighed.

"All right you three, what's the good news? And don't tell me that you've been searching for that no account Ooogie Boogie again! I told you that he's gone and he's ever coming back. I made sure of that!"

"We found her, Jack! We found her!" Barrel said, jumping up and down with such excitement that his skeleton mask fell to the ground.

"Get a hold of yourselves! Who did you find?"

"Sally!" they said excitedly.

Jack felt his heart warm; a strange glow in his chest that he hadn't experienced since he last visited Christmas town. He'd wanted so much to show Sally what a wonderful place it was.

"Well, what are we waiting for? Take me to her right away!"

And with that he followed his friends into the forest, accompanied by his faithful ghost dog Zero, who barked excitedly.


	13. Chapter 13

"Here we are, Jack!" Shock said excitedly.

Jack looked around at the familiar group of trees, each one bearing a different picture, including the one with the Christmas tree that led to Christmas town.

"You're crazy! Sally couldn't have possibly gone into one of these worlds. She's much too smart!" Jack said.

"What about this door, Jack?"

He looked over, surprised to find a door that he'd never seen before. This one had a large rainbow carved into its trunk.

"What's this?" he asked.

"Deco's world!" Lock said.

"Who's Deco?"

"Oh... he's handsome!" Stock sighed dreamily.

"And he's got Sally!" Barrel said. "I bet he's holding her hostage!" He added with a laugh.

"Well, he's not going to get away with it!" Jack said angrily. "Come on everyone! We're going to rescue Sally!"


	14. Chapter 14

Jack thrust the rainbow door open and peeked inside.

"I can't see anything!"

"Lean further Jack!" Stock yelled.

Jack did as Stock suggested, but he lost his balance...

"Whooooooaaaaaaa!"

Down, down he fell, tumbling further and further into a bright light and finally landed with a thud on a soft cloud.

He looked around in amazement. Everything was so beautiful in this alternate world.

No wonder Sally chose it.

And as though fate had intervened, he looked up to see her smiling face, while Zero barked excitedly.

"Sally!"

She gasped in delight at the sight of him.

"Jack! Zero! You found me!"

Jack and Sally ran toward each other, their arms outstretched, ready to embrace one another.

But suddenly Sally was snatched away.

Unhand her, Deco!" Jack demanded.

"Not a chance, Jack! She's staying her with me!"

"That's what you think, Deco!" Jack yelled.

"Sally loves me and said she wants to stay here!" Deco said. "Tell him, Sally!"

Sally looked worriedly at Jack.

"I thought you loved me, Sally." Jack said sadly.

"I-I do love you, Jack! I do love you!" Sally said.

"Forget him Sally; he's no good for you! He'll take you back to that dismal town of Halloween and you'll never be as happy as you are here." Deco said.

Sally shook her head. "That's not true, Jack! I don't love him! I love-."

Deco lunged for Sally, tearing her side in the process. When Jack went to help her, Deco pushed him out of the way, causing Zero to bark frantically.

"It's all right, Zero." Jack groaned. "I'm not giving up! Sally belongs with me! Deco doesn't love her!"

But Deco wouldn't budge and instead pulled Sally toward him. Jack did the same, causing a tug of war.

"Unhand her, Deco!" Jack demanded once more.

"You'll have to fight harder for her, Jack!" Deco said.

The two suitors battled for the beautiful rag doll and Sally turned away, unable to watch.

"Look out, Jack!"

Suddenly, Sally felt herself begin to wobble and then stumbled to the ground as darkness set in.


	15. Chapter 15

Sally opened her eyes, shocked to find Jack lying on the ground, lifeless.

"Oh Jack..."

She rose to her feet and stared at Deco. "What have you done?"

"I took care of him so that we could be together." Deco replied.

"But I love Jack! Hold on Jack! I'll help you!"

Deco tried to stop her but Zero was faster, biting him on the leg, seconds before Deco reached Sally.

"OW!"

Zero barked frantically in an effort to wake Jack. When that didn't work, Zero licked his owners face repeatedly.

Finally, Jack's eyes opened. "W-what happened?"

"Come on, Jack! Let's get out of here!" Sally cried.

Jack and Sally ran as fast as they could (Sally, clutching tightly to her dismantled limbs) until they came to a forest of trees.

And before them was a tree trunk with a pumpkin on its door.

"Ah... here we are." Jack said "Come on, Sally! Hang on to me!"

She clung to him tightly as they climbed through the door and found themselves tumbling down, down, down, landing with a thud on the hard ground.

Minutes later, Sally looked around at the grey sky and dismal surroundings.

"Oh, Jack! We're back in the town called Halloween!" She cried happily.

"But Sally..."

"Yes, Jack?"

"This place is so dark and gloomy. Not at all like the colorful world where Deco lives. I thought you were happy there."

"I thought I was too." Sally said. "But then I realized something."

"What's that?"

Sally moved closer and kissed him. "You're the only one who can make me happy. I love you, Jack."

"I love you too, Sally."

She hugged her pumpkin king, smiling at how good it felt to be held by his long, thin arms.

"Come on." Jack said, taking her hand.

"Where are we going?"

"To a special place. But first let's get you all sewn back up. Zero! Find me a needle and thread!"

The dog turned to fetch the items, but then Sally stopped him.

"I have some right here. "

She removed the needle and thread from her pocket and handed them to Jack.

Ever so gently, he began to stitch her up until she was as good as new.

"How does that feel? He asked.

"It's wonderful, Jack. I love it."

"Zero, cut that out! I need some time alone with Sally!"

Sally laughed as Zero continued kissing her face, excited to have her back in the town of Halloween.

Jack led her up the hill where the ground curved into a circle...

And kissed his beautiful rag doll under a huge yellow moon.

**THE END**

_**A/N: Sorry a lot of the chapters were so short. I usually try to make them much longer but I was trying to get this finished as quickly as possible. Thank you for reading and for your patience while I worked to get it finished. Hope you enjoyed it! I also wanted to thank those of you who have already left reviews. I took your feedback into consideration and actually got some good ideas for the rest of the story because of it!  
><strong>_


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